'No consensus,' no electoral reform, says St. John's East MP Nick Whalen

The Liberal MP for St. John's East says the federal government is not proceedingwith promised electoral reform because there is no clear alternative Canadians will support, and he'll take that message to a public rally in St. John's Saturday afternoon.

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Nick Whalen says it's hard to be the bearer of bad news, particularly in situations inwhich many people invested muchtime and effort because they are "really invested in the idea of electoral reform."

"Our party made a number of commitments during the election, which I campaigned on, principally to consult with Canadians before making any changes," Whalen told CBC Radio'sSt. John's Morning ShowFriday.

Whalensaid the federal Liberals are actually keeping their promise to change the country's electoral system.

'No clear alternative'

Whalen said the party consulted Canadians on the issue "in an unprecedented fashion" but as much as people wanted to change thefirst-past-the-post system, "there was no clear alternative" for what should replace it.

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"While I can see that's disappointing to people, I'm encouraged by the fact that we're keeping our promise of not making a change if it doesn't have the broad support of Canadians," he said.

I'm encouraged by the fact that we're keeping our promise of not making a change if it doesn't have the broad support of Canadians.- Nick Whalen

Whalen said the recommendation for a referendum on electoral reform from thespecial committee of representatives from each federal political party will not work without overarching support for a different system.

"It is so divisive," he said, pointing to the impact of Brexit in the United Kingdom.

"Unless you can provide people with a clear alternative for people to choose between, to suggest that a referendum is something you should explore, would break the country apart."